About the Journal
Sources of Support
The publication is funded by The Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria
Peer Review
THE PUBLICATION
The Journal of Banking is a research and policy-based publication of The Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN), a foremost professional banking Institute in Nigeria. The Journal of Banking is a publication focusing on topical issues in the core areas of banking and finance as well as other related disciplines with emphasis on implications for banking policy.
BEFORE THE REVIEW PROCESS
The following are guidelines for conduct expected from reviewers before accepting articles for review: Reviewers should -
? Only agree to review articles within their area of expertise.
? Respond to requests for review in a reasonable time-frame, particularly if the reviewer is unable to fulfil the obligation. Intentional delay should be avoided at all costs.
? Only agree to conduct the review if the appropriate time required to conduct a critical review of the article within the agreed time-frame is possible.
? Acknowledge deadlines and promptly inform the Journal Manager if they require an extension.
? Reviewers should declare their conflicts of interest and excuse themselves from the peer-review process if a conflict exists. This is discussed in further details below
o Decline to review if they feel unable to provide a fair and unbiased review.
o Decline to review if they have been involved with any of the work in the manuscript or its reporting.
o Decline to review if asked to review a manuscript that is very similar to one they have in preparation or under consideration at another journal.
? If a conflict of interest exists, ensure suggestions for alternative reviewers are based on suitability and not influenced by personal considerations or made with the intention of the manuscript receiving a specific outcome (either positive or negative).
? Review afresh any manuscript they may have previously reviewed for another journal as changes or additions might have been made and the journals’ criteria for evaluation and acceptance may be different.
? Review guidelines adequately before accepting a request for review and reverting to the Journal Manager if certain aspects of the guidelines are not clear
DURING THE REVIEW PROCESS
During the review process, the following code of conduct is expected from reviewers. Reviewers should:
? Respect the confidentiality of a peer review and not reveal any details of an article or its review, during the peer-review process, beyond those that are released by the journal
? Not allow their reviews to be influenced by personal beliefs or biases when conducting a review
? Be constructive when conducting their reviews, refraining from being hostile or inflammatory and from making derogatory personal comments
? Notify the journal immediately if they discover either a conflicting interest that was not apparent when they agreed to review the article or any challenges that might prevent them from providing a fair and unbiased review.
? Not intentionally delay the submission of their review. It is important for reviewers to submit their review within the deadline as an undue delay in the review process would affect overall deadlines for publication of the Journal
? Contact the Journal Manager if circumstances arise that will prevent them from submitting a timely review
? Not involve other personnel in the review of an article. This includes junior researchers/mentees
? In the course of the review, should a reviewer suspect the identity of the author(s), notify the Journal Manager of this knowledge and any potential conflict of interest.
? Notify the Journal Manager immediately if any irregularities or unethical aspects of the work are suspected.
? Ensure their review is based on the merits of the work and not influenced, either positively or negatively, by any conflicting considerations or by intellectual biases.
? Determine if the article follows the submission guidelines/instruction for authors, editorial policies and publication ethics.
? Articles would be sent to the reviewer in Microsoft Word format. Aside from the report to be submitted, reviewers are also expected to provide a comprehensive review of the article including feedback/input in Tracked Changes.
? Be specific in their criticisms, and provide evidence with appropriate references to substantiate general statements such as, ‘this work has been done before’
? When preparing a report
o Prepare a report summarizing review of the article. In evaluating an article, reviewers should focus on the following:
o Originality
o Contribution to the field
o Technical quality
o Clarity of presentation
o Depth of research
o Reports must not contain derogatory or personal comments aimed towards the author
o The reviewers report should contain recommendations which are backed with constructive arguments and facts based on the content of the article
o Reviewers’ reports must contain a final verdict specified as follows:
o Fit for publication
o Fit for publication subject to minor revisions
o Fit for publications subject to major revisions
o Unfit for publication
AFTER THE REVIEW PROCESS
After the review process, the following code of conduct is expected from reviewers: Reviewers should:
? Continue to respect the confidentiality of a peer review and not reveal any details of the articles or its review after the peer-review process
? Not use information obtained during the peer-review process for their own or any other person’s or organization’s advantage, or to disadvantage or discredit others
? Contact the Journal Manager if any information comes to light after submission of their review which may affect their original feedback and recommendations.
? Accommodate requests to review revised articles based on the reviewer’s recommendations.
Open Access Policy
This journal provides immediate open access to its content on the principle that making research freely available to the public supports a greater global exchange of knowledge.
The journal content is published under a Creative Commons License:
Attribution-Non-Commercial-No Derivatives 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0)
Publication Scheduling
This journal publishes twice a year.
General
Subscription information
Based on the Publication Policy, the Journal is to be made free for all members of The Chartered Institute of Bankers. However, non-members are required to pay a token to access the Journal. Non-Members are to pay either N1000 (Naira) or $2.50 (USD). They can pay in which ever currency is convenient for them.
